Political Birthdays: August 4

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Barack Obama

Official White House Photo by Pete Souza · Public domain · Commons

Today’s Political Birthday · August 4

Barack Obama

Born August 4, 1961. Turns 65 today.

Barack Hussein Obama II (born August 4, 1961) served as the 44th president of the United States from 2009 to 2017. A Democrat and the first African American president, he previously represented Illinois in the U.S. Senate (2005–2008) after serving in the Illinois state senate (1997–2004). His administration passed the Affordable Care Act and Dodd–Frank, negotiated the Paris Agreement, and authorized the raid that killed Osama bin Laden; he won the 2009 Nobel Peace Prize and has remained active in politics.

Sources: Wikipedia Wikidata

Other Political Birthdays Today

Keith Ellison

Born August 4, 1963. Turns 63 today.

Keith Ellison (born 1963) is Minnesota’s attorney general since 2019; formerly served in the U.S. House (2007–2019), first Muslim elected to Congress.

Wikipedia Wikidata

Ted Strickland

Born August 4, 1941. Turns 85 today.

Ted Strickland (born 1941) served as Ohio governor (2007–2011) and represented Ohio’s 6th congressional district in the U.S. House.

Wikipedia Wikidata

Clarke Reed

Born August 4, 1928. Died December 8, 2024 at age 96.

We remember Clarke Reed (1928–2024), Mississippi Republican Party chairman (1966–1976), credited with strengthening the GOP’s influence across the South.

Wikipedia Wikidata

Alberto Gonzales

Born August 4, 1955. Turns 71 today.

Alberto Gonzales (born 1955) served as U.S. Attorney General from 2005 to 2007; previously Texas Supreme Court justice and White House Counsel.

Wikipedia Wikidata

Ezra Taft Benson

Born August 4, 1899. Died May 30, 1994 at age 94.

Born on this day in 1899, Ezra Taft Benson (1899–1994) was Eisenhower’s Secretary of Agriculture and later president of the LDS Church.

Wikipedia Wikidata

Helen Thomas

Born August 4, 1920. Died July 20, 2013 at age 92.

Born on this day in 1920, Helen Thomas (1920–2013) was a pioneering White House correspondent who covered ten presidents.

Wikipedia Wikidata

Mayme Agnew Clayton

Born August 4, 1922. Turns 104 today.

We remember Mayme Agnew Clayton (1923–2006), librarian who founded the Western States Black Research and Education Center, assembling a major African-American historical collection.

Wikipedia Wikidata

Political birthday information was compiled from the linked public sources. Photo use follows the license shown beneath the image.